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Ferrari celebrated its 50 Years of success in Japan with the world premiere of the Special Project “Ferrari J50” at a very exclusive event at the New National Art Museum in Tokyo which hosted «over 300 passionate VIP guests» according to Ferrari.

The 2017 Ferrari J50 is a pure roadster designed and type-approved for Japan only.

Its name that says it all. Or almost. “J” means it is for Japan only; 50 stands for the years of Ferrari official presence in the land of the rising sun. The stunning roadster is being built in a limited series of ten units.

The price for each unit – tailor made - varies according to its patron specifications and commissions but Ferrari executives concede that it ranges between 2.5 and 3.0 million dollars. Typically, the entire lot of “Special Projects Ferraris” have already been sold out and deliveries are planned for late 2017.

Once they are delivered, seeing one on the road will be a rare chance.

In this case it will not be difficult to recognise it as one of the exclusive “J50 brood”.

Indeed the J50 is a new Ferrari model. The maker says that the J50 is «the first Fuori Serie model developed specifically for Japan» although the very first Fuoriserie actually built for Japan was a very unique one-off, called “SP 1” (For “Special Project 1”), designed by Leonardo Fioravanti at the request of Ferraris collector Junichiro Hiramatsu-san. That one-off was delivered back in 2008.

The J50’s has been created at Ferrari’s own Design Center led by Flavio Manzoni, and is quite unique and innovative in different areas. In a way it is more a “barchetta” than a “spider” and it also comes with a carbon fibre “folding hat” that can be conveniently stored behind the seats.

The new two-seater roadster is very different and spectacular in many ways from the Ferrari 488 Spider it is developed from. Indeed every body panel is entirely new; the interior comes with some differences and its V8, 3.9-litre turbocharged engine is credited of a stunning 690 HP output.

The new “Fuoriserie” comes with a new design language that while being avant-garde, banks on the minimalist and nimble simplicity of the early and light Ferraris.

«The design approach was led by the desire to create a very low-slung roadster, encapsulating intrinsic Ferrari values of nimbleness and agility», says Flavio Manzoni the director of Ferrari’s Design Organisation. The J50 roadster also banks on strong dynamics appeal underlined «by the raked black swage line which dramatically rises from the low-set nose through air intake aft of the doors» and the wedged side windows (that work as an extension of the windscreen to look as a full-width wrap around visor).

Its belt line is much lower and the car looks much “closer to the asphalt”.

On the sides, the air intakes for the rear engine are gentler and more elegantly integrated into the overall sculpture. The rear quarter is a dramatic change from the traditional “Ferrari-by-Pininfarina” design. The tail section is dominated by the sophisticated interplay of graphic design themes and three-dimensional elements. On its turn the engine is framed by a transparent polycarbonate cover, which is intricately shaped to provide a visual extension of the two separate roll hoops protecting the heads of driver and passenger. A transverse aero foil projects as a bridge between the hoops, effectively revisiting one of the most distinctive features of Ferrari sports prototypes of the 1960s.

The new J50 roadsteris the work of a young generation of designers and it introduces new design elements, such as the very distinctive “bridge” linking the rear fenders, that will likely be seen also in the next Ferraris for “production series”.